The present invention is directed generally to a sickbed, and more particularly to a sickbed with a reinforcing structure in the form of a long plate connected to each side member of a rear frame of a sickbed to strengthen the sickbed frame so as to substantially reduce the risk of the frame being deformed and/or coming apart where the two halves of the sickbed are joined.
In the prior art, a conventional sickbed 100 as shown in FIG. 3 is typically assembled from a front frame 1 and a rear frame 2, together with two end frames 3. The front and rear frames 1, 2 are reversibly connected to each other by engaging the hooks 11 provided at the inner ends of two side members of the front frame 1 with pins 21 that are correspondingly provided at inner ends of two angled side members of the rear frame. The hooked ends of the front end pivot around the pins 21 which project in a sideward manner from the outer surfaces of the vertical flanges of the angled side members, thereby coupling the front and rear frames 1, 2 together. This can further be appreciated in FIGS. 1 and 2.
The typical sickbed 100 of the prior art has a limited supporting capability because it has a central portion suspended between the end frames 3 and supported only by the connected hooks 11 and pins 21. A heavy load applied to either of the frames 1, 2, or a load heavily applied generally to the sickbed 100, tends to deform the hooks 11 and/or suspended frames 1, 2 as well as the pins 21, potentially causing the sickbed 100 frame to bend, twist, break and/or come apart.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a reinforcing structure for a sickbed, so that the side rails and the region where the front and rear frames of the sickbed are connected do not deform, or turn outward, or bend when the sickbed is subjected to an unevenly applied load or to a heavy load applied suddenly.
To achieve the above as well as other objectives, the reinforcing structure for preventing a sickbed from deforming according to the present invention includes a substantially Z-shaped angled reinforcing plate having a raised section provided at one of its ends and an extended base at its other end. The reinforcing plate has an angled contour in profile, much like a partly stretched-out Z. The base plate of a reinforcing plate is welded to a vertical flange of each rear side rail of the sickbed with the raised section fixedly connected to an outer end of the pin projected outwardly from the same vertical part of the angled side member. The base plates extend along the vertical flange of the rear side rails toward the rear end frame, providing substantial structural support and resistance of that part of the sickbed frame to deforming forces imposed upon it. The raised section of the reinforcing plate is fixedly connected to an outer end of a perpendicularly projecting pin that is fixedly connected at its other end to the corresponding vertical flange of the rear side rail. Hooks formed on the ends of the front side rails engage with the corresponding pins provided on the rear side rails, thereby sandwiching the hooked end of the front side rail between the rear side rail and the raised section of the reinforcing plate. This protective arrangement of the frame of a sickbed assembly substantially reduces the chances of the pins or side rails being deformed or displaced due to heavy or uneven loads being applied to the sickbed. The sickbed is deemed to be safer.